State news: North Korea proposes high-level talks with U.S.

By K.J. Kwon and Greg Botelho, CNN

Updated 6:41 AM ET, Sun June 16, 2013

Kim Jong Un and North Korea's military50 photos

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this photo released February 19 by the state-run Korean Central News Agency.

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A picture released by the North Korean Central News Agency shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appearing without his cane at an event with military commanders in Pyongyang on Tuesday, November 4. Kim, who recently disappeared from public view for about six weeks, had a cyst removed from his right ankle, a lawmaker told CNN.

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Kim is seen walking with a cane in this image released Thursday, October 30, by the state-run Korean Central News Agency.

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Kim sits in the pilot's seat of a fighter jet during the inspection.

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This undated photo, released Tuesday, October 14, by the KCNA, shows Kim inspecting a housing complex in Pyongyang, North Korea. International speculation about Kim went into overdrive after he failed to attend events on Friday, October 10, the 65th anniversary of the Workers' Party. He hadn't been seen in public since he reportedly attended a concert with his wife on September 3.

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A picture released by the KCNA shows Kim and his wife watching a performance by the Moranbong Band on Wednesday, September 3, in Pyongyang.

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Kim tours a front-line military unit in this image released Wednesday, July 16, by the KCNA.

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Kim poses for a photo as he oversees a tactical rocket-firing drill in June.

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Kim watches a tactical rocket-firing drill in June.

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A North Korean soldier patrols the bank of the Yalu River, which separates the North Korean town of Sinuiju from the Chinese border town of Dandong, on Saturday, April 26.

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In this photo released Thursday, April 24, by the Korean Central News Agency, Kim smiles with female soldiers after inspecting a rocket-launching drill at an undisclosed location.

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A picture released Tuesday, March 18, by the KCNA shows Kim attending a shooting practice at a military academy in Pyongyang.

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A North Korean soldier uses binoculars on Thursday, February 6, to look at South Korea from the border village of Panmunjom, which has separated the two Koreas since the Korean War.

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A North Korean soldier kicks a pole along the banks of the Yalu River on Tuesday, February 4.

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A photo released by the KCNA on Thursday, January 23, shows the North Korean leader inspecting an army unit during a winter drill.

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Kim inspects the command of an army unit in this undated photo released Sunday, January 12, by the KCNA.

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Kim visits an army unit in this undated photo.

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Kim inspects a military factory in this undated picture released by the KCNA in May 2013.

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Kim visits the Ministry of People's Security in 2013 as part of the country's May Day celebrations.

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A North Korean soldier, near Sinuiju, gestures to stop photographers from taking photos in April 2013.

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North Korean soldiers patrol near the Yalu River in April 2013.

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Kim is briefed by his generals in this undated photo. On the wall is a map titled "Plan for the strategic forces to target mainland U.S."

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Kim works during a briefing in this undated photo.

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In this KCNA photo, Kim inspects naval drills at an undisclosed location on North Korea's east coast in March 2013.

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Kim, with North Korean soldiers, makes his way to an observation post in March 2013.

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Kim uses a pair of binoculars to look south from the Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment, near South Korea's Taeyonphyong Island, in March 2013.

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Kim is greeted by a soldier's family as he inspects the Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment in March 2013.

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Kim is surrounded by soldiers during a visit to the Mu Islet Hero Defense Detachment, also near Taeyonphyong Island, in March 2013.

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Kim arrives at Jangjae Islet by boat to meet with soldiers of the Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment in March 2013.

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Soldiers in the North Korean army train at an undisclosed location in March 2013.

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In a photo released by the official North Korean news agency in December 2012, Kim celebrates a rocket's launch with staff from the satellite control center in Pyongyang.

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Kim, center, poses in this undated picture released by North Korea's official news agency in November 2012.

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Kim visits the Rungna People's Pleasure Ground, under construction in Pyongyang, in a photo released in July 2012 by the KCNA.

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A crowd watches as statues of North Korean founder Kim Il Sung and his son Kim Jong Il are unveiled during a ceremony in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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A North Korean soldier stands guard in front of an UNHA III rocket at the Tangachai-ri Space Center in April 2012.

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In April 2012, Pyongyang launched a long-range rocket that broke apart and fell into the sea. Here, the UNHA III rocket is pictured on its launch pad in Tang Chung Ri, North Korea.

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– A closer look at the UNHA III rocket on its launch pad in Tang Chung Ri, North Korea.

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A military vehicle participates in a parade in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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North Korean soldiers relax at the end of an official ceremony attended by leader Kim Jong Un at a stadium in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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Kim Jong Un applauds as he watches a military parade in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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A North Korean soldier stands on a balcony in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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North Korean soldiers march during a military parade in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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Soldiers board a bus outside a theater in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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North Korean performers sit below a screen showing images of leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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North Korean soldiers salute during a military parade in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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North Korean soldiers listen to a speech during an official ceremony attended by leader Kim Jong Un at a stadium in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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Members of a North Korean military band gather following an official ceremony at the Kim Il Sung stadium in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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North Korean military personnel watch a performance in Pyongyang in April 2012.

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A North Korean controller is seen along the railway line between the Pyongyang and North Pyongan provinces in April 2012.

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A North Korean military honor guard stands at attention at Pyongyang's airport in May 2001.

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Story highlights

U.S. should not lay out conditions, "not lose the opportunity," state news says

A North Korean government group makes its offer to the U.S. to "ease tensions"

The U.S. has spearheaded efforts targeting North Korea's nuclear program

The North abruptly called off talks days ago with South Korea

North Korea proposed high-level talks with the United States to "ease tensions in the Korean Peninsula," its state news agency reported early Sunday.

The topics that "can be sincerely discussed" include easing military tensions, changing a truce treaty to a peace treaty and nuclear matters, according to a statement from the North's National Defense Commission, as reported by the state-run Korean Central News Agency. It left some details -- like where and when the talks might be held -- up to Washington, and insisted U.S. officials should not lay out any preconditions for talks.

"(The United States should) not lose the opportunity that is laid out and should actively agree with our resolute step and good intention," the commission said.

For years, North Korea has been at odds with many in the international community, including the United States, over its missile and nuclear programs.

Whether Pyongyang's offer is accepted -- and if so, on what terms -- and whether the talks happen remains to be seen.

Last Tuesday, North Korea called off what were supposed to be the first high-level talks between North and South Korean officials in years. That meeting was supposed to start the next day.

South Korea's unification ministry said the North dropped out after a dispute about who should be involved in the talks, after both sides contended that the other wasn't sending a sufficiently high-level official to the delegation

The talks were to focus on, among other things, reviving joint economic activities. Amid a spike in tensions, the North in April halted activity at the Kaesong Industrial Zone, a shared industrial complex and major symbol of cooperation between the two countries.

It was not immediately clear what might be on the agenda if U.S. and North Korean officials meet. Washington has been at the forefront of those demanding an end to its nuclear program, pushing for sanctions and rallying other nations to their side.

Tensions in and around the Korean Peninsula surged in December -- one year after Kim Jong-un assumed power after his father's death -- when North Korea launched a long-range rocket then conducted an underground nuclear test two months later.

Adm. Samuel J. Locklear, the top U.S. commander in the Pacific, said in April that North Korea's missile and weapons programs posed "a clear and direct threat to U.S. national security and regional peace and stability."

That same month, North Korea set out demanding conditions for talks. They included calling for the withdrawal of U.N. sanctions against it and a permanent end to joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises.

The United States and South Korea "should immediately stop all their provocative acts against the DPRK and apologize for all of them," the North's National Defense Commission said in a statement carried by state-run media, using the shortened version of North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

But those talks never came to be, with South Korean foreign ministry spokesman Cho Tai-young describing the North's demands as "preposterous."

The United States has said that, in order for it to engage in talks, North Korea would have to show a serious commitment to moving away from its nuclear program.

If it happens, this will be the second senior-level talks between the U.S. and North since Kim Jong Un took power.

The first talks were in February 2012, when North Korea's first vice minister, Kim Kye Gwan, held talks in Beijing with Glyn Davies, the U.S. envoy for North Korea policy.

At the time,, North Korea agreed to stop nuclear activity at its main facility in Yongbyon and impose a moratorium on nuclear tests and long-range missile launch in exchange for 240,000 tons of food assistance.

However, the agreement fell apart after a U.N. sanction in response to North Korea's failed long-range rocket launch in April 2012.